Tony Gonzalez: Matt Ryan is excellent, but not elite

Posted by Josh Alper on February 6, 2014, 4:47 PM EDT

AP

A couple of years back, the question of whether or not Eli Manning was an elite quarterback became an offseason discussion topic.

The question of whether or not that modifier applies to another quarterback has been raised by the quarterback’s recently retired tight end. ESPN the Magazine has an upcoming interview with Tony Gonzalez that features Gonzalez placing Ryan in a category just below elite.

“Matt’s an excellent quarterback. But he’s not elite. He’s this close. He’ll get there, but he has some learning to do,” Gonzalez said, via NFL Live on ESPN.

The line between the adjectives we use to describe a quarterback’s place are hard to define, although that doesn’t make it easier to put up much of an argument with Gonzalez’s assessment. Ryan remained a fairly effective quarterback in 2013 while dealing with injured receivers and a bad offensive line and is solidly in the top half of quarterbacks in the NFL, but winning big in the playoffs is usually a prerequisite for getting the elite label.

In the interview, Gonzalez also suggests at one point that he’d be open to a possible return next season, if the Falcons are 9-2 in November. If Ryan makes the improvement that Gonzalez believes he needs, the Falcons would be better positioned to be such a team whether or not Gonzalez decides to strap their helmet back on in 2014.

In the age of parity, it’s nearly impossible to pick out which team will be getting a ring (especially this many months before the season begins, or the draft even happens). It is a more sure bet to just assume that the Seahawks and Broncos will not be winning the next Super Bowl, but beyond that it’s a crap shoot.

someone please correct me if I’m wrong but I’m pretty sure Tony G signed a 2 yr contract with the Falcons so for those in KC & NE calling for him to come to town may as well forget it unless the Falcons cut him. I’m not sure how that works but I think he is under contract with the Falcons for the 2014 season.

I don’t really know where Ratt Myan can really improve to become elite. He generally makes good decisions and can eviscerate secondaries with time and weapons. It seems what’s holding him back is his lack of elite physical tools, and I don’t know how he could improve there. He can’t just magically improve his arm strength and mobility.

I don’t really know where Ratt Myan can really improve to become elite. He generally makes good decisions and can eviscerate secondaries with time and weapons. It seems what’s holding him back is his lack of elite physical tools, and I don’t know how he could improve there. He can’t just magically improve his arm strength and mobility.

Tony G has never been on a team with an elite quarterback. Doesn’t the saying “you wouldn’t know it if you’ve never had it” apply here? Not saying Tony doesn’t know football…just challenging the statement.

This is the first time I have heard he was interested or willing to go to any other team if they are making a SB run late in season……….He should have tried to get traded this past season when it was speculated he could have gone to a contender. It would have helped Atlanta get a late draft pick or even a current young prospect……Now; nothing he does, short of returning, can help them.

The whole Falcons team, organization & fans lack substance… You can see it in there faces when the adversity hits. They are too Hotlanta trendy & believe their own hype so the house of cards always comes crashing down… at the critical moments.

Fans determine that you are elite based on how many fantasy points you rack up. Good grief! Bart Starr was a great qb with 5 titles (the only one with five, save Otto Graham=7). He is a HOFer and a good man. Was he elite-no! He was a great qb on an elite team-probably the greatest of all time. Players know the elites. When they step into the huddle, shut up and wait for the play from a man that they trust for a win. Peyton, Brady, Montana, Unitas and a handful of others are the elites.

Not controversial in the sense that most people wouldn’t agree with him about that, but more in the sense that in everything else I’ve heard him say, he’s avoided anything that even comes close to minor criticism of anyone else.

Kapp haters keep on hating!!!! Niner fans love kapp!!!! Atleast kapp had the niners with in 1 score of winning nfc championship!!!! 11-4 !!!
So how did manning fare against seattle!!!!!lol
I will take kapp…..

OK, Ryan as an Excellent QB remained a fairly effective quarterback in 2013 while dealing with injured receivers and a bad offensive line. Yet this “excellent” QB led his team to a 4-12 record.

How do we compare this performance? How would an ELITE QB dealing with injured receivers, a bad offensive line, and a totally revamped defense due to season ending injuries to its defensive stars have done? Well, Brady and his team finished 12-4, won one playoff game and finally ran out of gas against the Broncos in the AFC Championship game.

Its remarkable how an “excellent” QB leads his team versus the results that an “Elite” QB can push his team to achieve.

Gee Tony. You’ll get roasted for speaking the truth. Atlanta will never go anywhere with Meek Smith as the coach and Tommy DimBulb-atroff as the GM. NEVER!
Of course a fourth place schedule will help them this year. Then back to the usual incompetence.

I’m not understanding how Ryan = Romo? Ryan had got into the playoffs 3 times. Though he had only won one game, romo can’t win it even keep the game close to put his team in the playoffs. Romo has a much better defense, and O-line also. So Ryan is doing more than romo with less, but Ryan = romo? Your math is a tad flawed.

Rodgers lost his starting left tackle, best WR (Cobb), best Tight End (J. Finley) James Jones for a while, broke in a new RB and had new starting center, right tackle and had one of the worst defenses and still made the playoffs.

To the people talking about him not being Peyton. Peyton is 11-12 in the playoffs and 1-2 in the Superbowl. He has 37 touch downs and 24 interceptions playoffs compared to Brady’s 43-22 ratio. To put it in comparison Brett “Gunslinger” Favre is 44-30.

Drew Brees ratio of 24-6 in 11 playoff games and Rodgers 19-5.

Peyton takes care of the ball less. To put it in perspective this post season Peyton three five touchdowns and three interceptions going 1-2 in the Superbowl. The loss against the Ravens? Three touchdowns and two interceptions. Also 1-1 in the New Orleans Superbowl. What has put him ahead his padding his stats against teams like the Jets who haven’t been the greatest secondary wise even though they had Revis, and a great showing in 2004 post season which ended against the Patriots going 1-4 and then later 0-1 against them for 238 yards. Donovan McNabb went 3-3 against the same team passing 357 in his loss.

Let’s not forget the Superbowl winning season against the REX GROSSMAN Bears where Peyton was 3-7 that post season going 1-1 in that SB. Get a better QB and Peyton Manning is 0-3 in the Superbowl. He’s also 3tds to 4ints in the Superbowl now. The point is that Peyton is good (in the regular season) but he isn’t god, he tends to collapse when facing good teams thus is arm won’t and hasn’t carried a team to a SB win. Brady has done better (with Adam sealing the deal). Rodgers & Brees too who are younger but I doubt their ratios are going to have a drastic change.

So the question here is knowing how he handles adversity, is Peyton truly elite? Of course Ryan isn’t.

As a Atlanta Falcons Season ticket holder and a Tony G fan, I am a little hesitant on attacking this statement. First, I think Matt Ryan is an excellent QB. a lot of us thought Peyton Manning was going to win the Super Bowl against Seattle, but it did not happen! Does this not make him an great, elite, or top tier QB. I do not want to go there and think Tony should have not. Yes, QBs are judged off Championships or are they (Marino). This is a team sport. It was proven this last Super Bowl….Seattle D, Special Teams and Offense all dominated Denver. I say team effort. Elat took a while, but he got his. my opinion Matt Ryan will also. There are different variables that play a role. Believe it or not Matt Ryan had a great season though his team went 4-12..check the stats…it goes back to what some say..you can’t really judge QBs from different generations. Matt is still young..the QBs Tony are referring to are 2-3 years from the end of their careers. So, I either agree or disagree with Tong Gs statement. Go Falcons, Rise Up!

As a Falcons fan I can agree with what he said. All Matt needs is a few more playoff wins and maybe a SB to be at the Rodgers and Brady level. To be fair to Matt though as good as his offense has been he’s never had a defense ranked above 15 to lean on in case of bad games. Him and Andrew Luck are the leaders of that “Almost Elite Tier” of QBs.

As a Seahawk fan since 1976 I MIGHT be a little biased, but if Russell Wilson keeps winning playoff games (4-1) like he has won regular season games (most in first two years in NFL history), how could you NOT consider him elite?

So what do these “elite” quarterbacks have that Ryan doesn’t? An offensive line. Since Ryan arrived the Falcons front office, and Arthur Blank, have been obsessed with “names” in the backfield for years and just ignores the line. Put Ryan behind the line of any of the teams these “elite” quarterbacks play with and there wouldn’t be enough fingers for the Super Bowl rings he would win.

Steve Young will never win a ring. Pete Carroll will never do anything in the NFL. The fact is, no one knows if Kap will take the next steps in his career. Kap wasn’t just along for the ride in the 4 winning playoff games he’s been a part of. Idiots talk about him like he’s freakin Mark Sanchez.

The hate on Kaepernick is ridiculous. All he’s done in a year in a half is play in the Super Bowl and another NFC title game. He played with a lead on the champs for three more quarters than manning played with. He also played much better against Carolina and Seattle than Luck managed against NE’s D.

Elite is a delicate word, too. I agree that Ryan is very good. Excellent, even. But the ELITE quarterbacks are Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady. I use to say Drew Brees, but I’ve seen him lay eggs too many times during the past couple of years for me to see him as elite. I would consider him as Elite-Lite, right now.

Nothing controversial about this statement. I mean think about it. ‘Elite’ should imply at worst that you’re in the top 10-15% of what you’re looking at. With 32 starting QBs, that means he’d have to be in the top 3-5. He’s not that guy. So what? You can be an ‘excellent’ QB and lead your team to a superbowl.

Ryan has more tools around him than almost every other QB in the league. He has yet to show that he can win with all that talent. He looks like a good QB physically so the problem has to be in his head. That is a tough problem to overcome. Can’t blame all the losses on the defense.

Joe Flacco laughs as he polishes his Super Bowl Ring, Counts his millions, and eats his mighty wings. Matt Ryan is looking around like, Flacco? really? MVP? WOW!….and I am like…JOE FLACCO WAS THE BETTER PICK!!! HES NEVER HAD JULIO JONES, RODDY WHITE, TONY G, MATT TURNER. I suspect the Falcons win it all with Joey Vincent at the helm. Jeez Ozzie really is the wizard

what makes an athlete elite? the seahawks clearly made peyton manning look less elite. not only in the superbowl but in the preseason game as well. the ravens defense speared by ray lewis and ed reed always made both manning and brady look less elite. so I’m saying it’s possible to be elite in a subpar division and when a couple of great games in a career and become great. usually if a quarterback wins two superbowls, he’s considered one of the GOATs. but Eli won two in a short amount of time and isn’t ranked no where near peyton or brady. but he’s played in a tougher division

“what makes an athlete elite? the seahawks clearly made peyton manning look less elite. not only in the superbowl but in the preseason game as well. the ravens defense speared by ray lewis and ed reed always made both manning and brady look less elite. so I’m saying it’s possible to be elite in a subpar division and when a couple of great games in a career and become great. usually if a quarterback wins two superbowls, he’s considered one of the GOATs. but Eli won two in a short amount of time and isn’t ranked no where near peyton or brady. but he’s played in a tougher division”

You mean the division where Tony Romo and the Eagles just puked all over themselves year after year??? And is there one other team in that division? I’m not sure as I’m drawing a blank. No-one comes to mind!! Meh. Must be a real powerhouse division you’re spitting chunks over. Wow. What a load of garbage you spew outta your blowhole.